Return with us now to the good old days.
Mid-2007, say.
That's when the current-generation Lexus LX 570 hit the showroom floors as a 2008 model. When bigger was better, when more was more. When an SUV dripping in all the luxury and tech the Toyota gang could muster, with a base price of more than $70,000 and an EPA mileage estimate that wouldn't challenge your ability to count too far into double-digits was no big deal...at least not for the intended clientele.
It was the days of "go big or go home"...and Lexus went big.
For those whose investment accounts can still justify it, the LX 570 is very impressive. Even approaching it with the new realities firmly in mind, it takes about 10 minutes of driving to begin marvelling at just how right they got this one...how nice it is to drive...how capable....how much you want one.
For 2010, the changes are minimal...a USB connection for your portable music player, and the next-gen hard-drive, voice-activated nav system are the big items. And they both work very nicely.
Base price this year is $76,405...and that comes with a list of standard features that, if I were to transcribe it, would probably have Blogger instituting a charge-by-the word policy in an hour or so. Go here to read it on Lexus' dime.
With that kind of standard content, options should be at a minimum...and I guess they are...but that doesn't mean that they're cheap. Six options (climate control seats, the Luxury Package with upgraded wood, leather and the Pre-Crash system, a Mark Levinson Audio System, Lexus Link, front and side monitoring system with Intuitive Park Assist and a Rear Seat Entertainment System) added another $12,000 and change to the bottom line...pushing it to within a few hundred dollars of 90 large.
And then there's the EPA estimate...12 city/18 highway.
The pool of potential buyers for this vehicle isn't what it was...but there's definitely still a market...and Lexus' moves of optimism pre-recession have actually positioned the LX570 as a real contender, not a wanna-be, in competition with Range Rover. Over time, and as the economy improves, they may end up looking very wise.
